Air mixer



July 28, 1925.

F. J. WEST AIR MIXER Filed July 5, 1923 INVENTOR F. I. West Bar 'tionaview throug Patent ei'l July 28, 1925-.

UNITED STATES 1,547,703 PATENT OFFICE.

rnnnnmcx' JAMES wns'r, or wmmrno, MANITOBA, caimna.

AIR MIXER.

Application med Jul 5,

' gine and which will supply. air to the intake manifold to mix with the.firing mixture coming from the carburetor.

A further object 18 to construct the device such that the amount of airis automatically governed by the running condition of the en ine andsuch that either hot or cold air wi 1 be admitted to the manifold,depending on temperature conditions of the engine, such latter beingaccomplished by a thermostatic control.

With the above more important objects in View the invention consistsessentially in the arrangement and construction of parts hereinaftermore particularly described and later pointed out in the appendedclaims, reference being had to the accompanying drawing in which:

Fig. 1 is a side view of an automobile engine equipped with myinvention.

Fig. 2 is an 'enlar eddetailed vertical sectional view throng the airadmission valves and parts associated therewith.

-Fi 3 is an enlar ed detailed vertical secthe controlling valveassociated with the manifold.

Fig. 4 is a erspective view of the barrel of the control ing valve.

In the drawing like characters of reference indicate corresponding partsin the several figures.

The automobile engine 1 is of the customary internal combustion type andpresents the usual intake manifo d 2, exhaust manifold 3 and carburetor4, which latter proportions and admits the firing mixture to the intakemanifold. The customary throttle valve 5 is located in the intakemanifold to control the amount of firing mixture passing up'the intakemanifold and this valve is supplied with the usual lever 6 1923. Serial-No. 849,761.

which is operated by the throttlevalve rod 7, the rear end ofwhich isconnected to a suitable crank 8. Usually the crank is controlled fromthe throttle lever (not shown) positioned on the upper end of thesteering post 9.

All the above parts are ofordinary construction and on this account afurther description of the same is not considered necessary. I

An engine equipped with my invention is provided with the followingparts:

A heating pipe 10 is passed through the exhaust manifold, one end of thepipe form- 'ing. an exterior valve seat 11 and the other end beingprojected a short distance beyond the manifold and being fittedwithalateral screw, threaded outlet nipple 12 which communicates with anair pipe 13 connected to the nipple by. a screw coupling 14. Atemperature controlled valve 15 is adapted to engage the seat 11. Thisvalve in the presentinstance is of a cone shape and is carried by twobars suitably riveted together, the bars being fastened permanently to abracket 16 secured to the manifold. The top bar 17 is a brass one andthe under bar 18 is a steel one, such arrangement causing the valve 15to move away from the seat under increasing temperature conditions andto move towards the seat as the temperature lowers. The valve and barscarrying the same are enclosed within a casing 19 suitably fastened tothe intake manifold and having one end open as indicated at20 to admitoutside air. An adjusting screw 21 is carried by the casing and isadapted to engage withthe u per bar 17, such adjusting screw being aaptedto regulate the extreme open position of the valve. To the valve 15I connect a rod 22 which passes downwardly centrally of the pipe 10.andis provided at its lower end with a plunger valve 23, the latter valvebeing slidably mounted in the lower end of the pipe 10 in a positionnormally beneath the lower side of the nipple 12.

According to this arrangement itfwill be apparent that any movement ofthe valve 15 causes a corresponding movement in the valve 23 and thatshould the valve 15 rise sufliciently high the valve 23 will open bymoving inwardly a suflicient amount to permit cold air to pass throughthe lower end of the pipe 10 and into the pipe 13. The

the casing. The ends of this annular chamher are closed and the barrelis provided with lengthwise extending V-shaped slots 27 having the smallends of the slots at the end next the intake manifold. An inlet passage28 leads from the inner end of the barrel to an. L-shaped pipe 29entering the intake manifold and having the free end thereof turnedupwardly and terminating in a perv.forated'ball or mixer 30 positionedcentrally of the manifold. A controlling valve 31 is slidably mounted inthe barrel and the said valve is partly cylindrical and partly conicaland the cone shaped end 32 extends towards the intake manifold and whensaid valve is moved to the right is adapted to close against the seat 33and thereby close entrance to the passage 28. In connection with thisvalve 31 it is pointed out that as the said valve movesto-the leftwithin the barrel it gradually opens the slots 27 and by so doingpermits a gradually increasing volume of air to pass from the chamber26' to the passage 28, this by virtue of the V-shape of the slots. Avalve stem 34 is connected to the valve 31 and passes outwardly throughthe end of the casing and is connected pivotally to an operating rod 35which is pivotally attached to the throttle rod 7. According to thislatter arrangement, as the throttle rod 7 is shifted by the automobiledriver to open or close the throttle valve, the valve 31 iscorrespondingly opened and closed.

An adjusting screw 36 is screw threaded into the casing 24 and isadapted when screwed in to pass into the passage 28. This screw willdecrease the area of the passage, depending on the amount that it isscrewed In the drawing I have shown the throttle valve in a partiallyopen position and on' this account the valve 31 is shown partially open.

When an engine with my appliance thereon is started the valves 15 and 23are closed, although the valve 31 may be open, depending on the positionof the throttle valve.

The engine, accordingly, starts under ordi-' nary conditions. As theengine gradually warms up, the exhaust manifold becomes warm, as doesthe interior of the casing 19. The valve 15 will accordingly graduallyopen, depending on the temperature condition in'the casing. As the valve15 opens, warm air is admitted to the pipe 10 and is heated in the pipeby the passing exhaust gases. From the pipe 10 the hot air is ledthrough the pipe 13 to the pipe 29 and is thoroughly mixed with theupgoing firing For all normal running conditions of the engine the valve15 is open and the valve 23 is closed, and by being closed I mean thereis no cold air admitted 'to the pipe 13 through the lower end; ofthe'pipe '10,

Should the engine, however, become abnor mally hot the valve 15 willopen to such an extent that cold air-will be admitted through the lowerend of thepipe 10 tothe pipe 13 past the valve 23. In an overheatedcondition of the engine the valve 15 could be so far open that the valve23 would close the pipe 10 above the nipple so that there would be nohot air whatever admitted to the pipe 13. I mention this latter featureto show more clearly the control which these two valves can have overthe air passing through the pipe 13 and in this connection it is pointedout that the control is entirely thermostatic. The amount of air,however,

finally reaching the intake manifold to be mixed with the firingmixture, is entirely controlled by the valve 31 which in turn operatesin unison with thethrottle valve.

What I claim as my invention is 1. The. combination with the intake andexhaust manifolds of an internal combustion engine, of a mixer containedwithin the intake manifold, a pipe. passing through the exhaust manifoldandhaving the ends thereof open and forming a heater, a'pipe connectingthe heater with the mixer and thermostatically controlled valvesoperating in tandem at the opposite ends of the heater and automaticallycontrolling the admission of air to the heater.

2.,The combination with the intake and exhaust manifolds of an internalcombustion engine, of a mixer contained within the intake manifold, apipe passing through the exhaust manifold and forming a heater, one endof the pipe forming an exterior valve seat and the other end beingextended beyond the exhaust manifold to provide an inlet for exteriorair, a pipe connecting the extended end of the former pipe with themixer, a casing associated with the exhaust manifold and enclosing thevalve seat, a thermostatically controlled valve mounted Within thecasing and adapted to seat on the valve seat andto admit a greater orless amount of air to the heater, depending on temperature conditions,valve slidably mounted in the lower end of the heater pipe and connectedto the former valve to move 'tle valve, an air pipe, a'valve introducedbetween the air pipe and the mixer and controlling the amount of airadmitted to the mixer from the air pipe, a connection between the valveand the throttle valve controlling rod whereb the movement of the valveis controlled y the throttle rod, an air heater associated with theexhaust manifold and communicating with the air pipe, andthermostatically controlled air inlet valves associated with the heaterand controlling the admission of hot and cold air to the heater.

4.- In an internal combustion engine, auxiliary air supply meanscomprising a tube passing through the exhaust manifold, a delivery pi eleading from the tube and connected ereto at apoint between one end ofthe tube and the manifold, a valve slidably mounted in the tube andnormally positioned between the delivery pipe and the adjacent end ofthe tube, a second valve normally closing the tube at the opposite end,a connection between said valves and a thermostat for operating thevalves.

5. In an internal combustion engine, the provision of auxiliary airsupply means comprising an air receiver, means for heating a portion ofsaid receiver, adelivery pipe leading from the receiver, thermostaticvalve means controlling the passage of air through the receiver in suchmanner as to permit either hot or cold air to pass through the receiverto the delivery pipe dependent upon en ine temperature, a valvecasingconnecte to the engine manifold and to the delivery pipe and avalve mounted in said casing to control passage of air between thedelivery pipe and the manifold.

Signed at Winnipeg, this 7th day of June, 1923. f

FREDERICK JAMES WEST.

In the presence of GERALD S. RoxBURcH, MADnnmNn B. KELLEHER.

